Important Facts for Prelims (30th October 2018)

• 30 Oct 2018

Odisha Launches Early Warning Dissemination System (EWDS)

• Odisha launched the first-of-its-kind Early Warning Dissemination System (EWDS) in India which will warn coastal communities and fisherfolk simultaneously about impending cyclone and tsunami through siren towers.
• Sirens will go off from the towers installed along the coast of the State if a button is pressed in the State emergency centre in Bhubaneswar.
• Fishermen fishing in deep sea can also be reached via mass SMS on their mobile phones through EWDS.
• The EWDS, a collaborative effort of the Central and State governments, has been implemented under the assistance of World Bank.
• It comprises technologies such as satellite-based mobile data voice terminals, digital mobile radio, mass messaging system and universal communication interface for interoperability.
• It’s a part of the last-mile connectivity programme under National Cyclone Risk Mitigation Project and aims to inform the last man living near the sea in case of an impending cyclone.

National Cyclone Risk Mitigation Project

• The National Cyclone Risk Mitigation Project (NCRMP) is a project of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), implemented in 13 cyclone-prone coastal States/UTs with the assistance of World Bank.
• The objective of the NCRMP is to reduce vulnerability of coastal communities to cyclone and other hydro meteorological hazards through:
  1. 1. Improved early warning dissemination systems,
  2. 2. Enhanced capacity of local communities to respond to disasters,
  3. 3. Improved access to emergency shelter, evacuation, and protection against wind storms, flooding and storm surge in high areas,
  4. 4. Strengthening DRM capacity at central, state and local levels in order to enable mainstreaming of risk mitigation measures into the overall development agenda.
• The first Phase of the project is being implemented since 2011 in the States of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha.
• The second phase will be implemented in the States of Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra and West Bengal. The project is to be implemented from 2015-16 to 2019-2020.

Adenovirus Infections

• A recent outbreak of Adenovirus has killed 9 children in the USA.
• Adenoviruses are a family of viruses that can infect people of all ages and often affect the upper respiratory tract.
• The signs and symptoms of adenovirus infections are similar to those of the common cold.
• The infections usually cause only mild symptoms and get better on their own in a few days. But they can be more serious in people with weak immune systems, especially children.
• Different adenoviruses cause illness at different areas in the body. Some strains cause infection of the lining of the eyelids, breathing passages, and lungs, while others affect the bowel or bladder.
• Adenovirus is highly contagious. Infections are common in close-contact settings, such as childcare centers, schools, hospitals, and summer camps.

Train 18

• India's first engineless semi-high speed train - "Train 18" - was rolled out by the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.
• It will eventually replace the Shatabdi Express for inter-city travel.
• The fully air-conditioned train, driven by a self-propulsion module, has the potential to become the country's fastest train provided the infrastructure was improved.
• Train-18 has two driving trailer coaches with aerodynamic driver's cab (nose cone) on both the ends which will enable quicker turn-around time at destinations.
• Every alternative coach is motorized, to ensure even distribution of power and faster acceleration/deceleration.
• Features: CCTV cameras, diffused lighting, automatic doors and footsteps, GPS-based passenger information system.
• Train 18 was the only new train announced in Budget-2018. It is manufactured under the ‘Make in India’ initiative at half the cost of import.
• The railways will now focus on another project - Train 20 - the next generation aluminium-bodied sleeper class trains that will replace the Rajdhani Express trains and is expected to be rolled out by 2020.

Gujarat’s First Mega Food Park

• The Minister for Food Processing Industries inaugurated the first Mega Food Park in Surat, Gujarat. A second Mega Food Park was also sanctioned in Mehsana District of Gujarat.
• Mega Food Parks along with other schemes like Integrated Cold Chain and Value Addition, Infrastructure for Agro-processing Clusters etc. is under an umbrella scheme known as Pradhan Mantri Kisan SAMPADA Yojana.

Pradhan Mantri Kisan SAMPADA Yojana (PMKSY)

• It is implemented by Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI).
• It is the rechristened version of the Central Sector Scheme- SAMPADA (Scheme for Agro-Marine Processing and Development of Agro-Processing Clusters).
• Its objective is to supplement agriculture, modernize processing and decrease Agri-Waste.

Mega Food Park

• It aims to link agricultural production to the market by bringing together farmers, processors and retailers.
• Mega Food Parks create modern infrastructure facilities for food processing along the value chain from farm to market with strong forward and backward linkages through a cluster based approach.
• Common facilities and enabling infrastructure is created at Central Processing Centre (CPCs) and facilities for primary processing and storage is created near the farm in the form of Primary Processing Centers (PPCs) and Collection Centers (CCs).
• The financial assistance under the scheme is provided in the form of grant-in-aid, i.e. 50% of eligible project cost in general areas and 75% of eligible project cost in North East Region and difficult areas (Hilly States and ITDP areas) subject to maximum of Rs. 50 crore per project.